Harford, Baltimore counties enter agreement on trash collection

Baltimore and Harford counties have struck a deal on trash collection they say will benefit taxpayers in both places.

A patch of green brightens Broadway East

A new urban park is bringing a patch of green to a once-blighted corner of Broadway East, a project organizers hope can be a model for improving the quality of life and reducing pollution in other distressed Baltimore neighborhoods.

Long-banned chemicals found in pregnant mothers' blood

As a reminder of just how persistent some toxic chemicals can be, a Johns Hopkins-led research team reports finding traces of long-banned DDT and PCBs along with other contaminants in the blood of 50 pregnant women checked from Baltimore and its suburbs. 

Council to consider ban on foam cups, carryout containers

Fed up with foam cups floating in Baltimore's waterways, a City Council committee voted Tuesday to approve a ban on polystyrene foam products for carryout food and drink items within the city limits.

In 'bag war,' studies clash on plastic sack litter

As Baltimore City Council grapples once again with whether to levy a small fee on plastic and paper shopping bags, groups on both sides of the policy debate already are tossing out conflicting information on whether fees work, and even whether single-use sacks constitute a significant litter problem or not.

Baltimore gets $400,000 to redevelop brownfields

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday that it is awarding $400,000 to the Baltimore Development Corp. to evaluate potentially contaminated property in the city for cleanup and redevelopment.

City considering fee on shopping bags

Baltimore might impose a 10-cent fee on every plastic and paper bag distributed by merchants in the city — a move praised by environmentalists as a litter deterrent but decried by some businesses who say it would hurt them and their shoppers.

Anne Arundel Co. advises people not to swim

As hundreds of people prepare to participate in the annual Great Chesapeake Bay Swim on Sunday, Anne Arundel County health officials have issued an advisory warning people of potentially dangerous levels of bacteria in the water because of storm runoff.

Expert panel to discuss future of Patapsco Valley

Area residents are invited to join members of a local environmental group and experts in conservation and related fields on Wednesday, June 12, to discuss the creation of a long-term sustainability and conservation plan for the Patapsco Valley.

Upgraded vent systems ordered for 31 nuclear reactors, including two at Peach Bottom

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Thursday that it has ordered a venting upgrade for nearly a third of the reactors in the country, including ones at the Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station just north of Harford County.

Wyman Park stream turns colors in hunt for sewage leak

A stream flowing through Wyman Park turned bright pink, then lime green Thursday as city crews attempted to pinpoint with dye a break in a sewage pipe that officials estimate has spilled tens of thousands of gallons of untreated human waste into the tributary of the Jones Falls.

Baltimore's parks slip to 21st in nation

Baltimore's park system has slipped from 15th to 21st in an expanded ranking of open space in the nation's 50 largest cities with relatively low funding cited as a continuing problem.

Dismal shad run puts Conowingo Dam in crosshairs

It's been a busy but ultimately disappointing spring for the crew that runs the big fish lift at Conowingo Dam.

Harbor's water quality rated C-minus - with an asterisk

Despite a foul-smelling algae bloom and fish kill this time last year, Baltimore's ailing harbor actually earned a C-minus grade overall for water quality in 2012, according to the latest ecological report card issued by the Healthy Harbor campaign.

Rock Creek residents help grow oysters

As gulls and cormorants perched on the walls of Fort Carroll looked on, a crabbing boat stopped long enough to jettison 30 bushel baskets of very special oyster shells into the Patapsco River.

Weekend events: Trash sweep, Inner Harbor walk

With the weekend upon us, there are events happening in the city aimed at enlisting residents in improving their neighborhoods while also cleaning up Baltimore harbor. Oh, and participants will be getting a little fresh-air exercise in the process.

Frederick County levies 1-cent storm-water fee

Unhappy over a state law requiring property owners to pay a new fee to help clean up the Chesapeake Bay, Frederick County officials have decided to set the charge at just a penny a year.

State sticks with Smith Island buyout

State officials have decided to forge ahead with a controversial offer to buy out about 10 homeowners on Smith Island as part of a plan for helping Somerset County recover from superstorm Sandy.

Coast Guard finishes cleanup of Curtis Bay Superfund site

After nearly a dozen years, $16 million and the removal of some 50,000 tons of contaminated dirt, the Coast Guard declared the Superfund site at the Coast Guard Yard south of Baltimore cleaned and ready for duty Thursday.

Anne Arundel students build a better, or at least less problematic, crab trap

For years, environmentalists and watermen have been searching for a way to deal with the Chesapeake Bay's "ghost pots" — derelict crab traps that are too deep to retrieve and too problematic to co-exist with marine life. Though the traps have been abandoned, they continue to ensnare and kill crabs.

Mallard babies hatch at MedStar Harbor Hospital

 MedStar Harbor Hospital is the new home to a family of Mallards.

Season's first 'Code Orange' air quality levels forecast Thursday, Friday

As the temperature climbs this week, air quality is expected to deteriorate to conditions unhealthy for many people, according to forecasts.

Derailed train carried toxic chemicals

The freight train that derailed Tuesday in Rosedale carried one chemical classified as hazardous by the U.S. Department of Transportation and another that also posed risks for firefighters and others at the scene even though not similarly classified.

Royal Farms fined for Md. fuel leaks

Royal Farms has agreed to pay a $600,000 penalty for fuel leaks at two of its Maryland outlets and to check dozens more for possible problems, the state Department of the Environment said.

Calvert Cliffs nuclear unit restarts

Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant in southern Maryland restarted one of its two reactors Thursday after fixing the mechanical problem that caused its shutdown two days earlier, a Constellation spokesman said.